My System/3 model 10 (2010) • Hacker News Board

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#11

Post by comrad » Tue, Feb 14, 2023, 3:13 PM UTC

somat wrote: post #6

TedDoesntTalk wrote: post #5

What was system/3 used for?

I had to look it up, it is the ancestor to the as/400 family of computers.

which is the ancestor of the system i series.

I learned COBOL (a adapted heavily scripted version of that) on a AS/400 used to control automotive operations in a factory.

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#12

Post by macjohnmcc » Tue, Feb 14, 2023, 4:54 PM UTC

jacquesm wrote: post #7

rshphx wrote: post #2

Very cool! It warms my heart that a few of you will keep some of these vintage machines alive. I’m guessing there’s FORTRAN on there somewhere. Curious what you paid for it?

Mostly RPG rather than scientific computing, though you could get COBOL, FORTRAN and of course an assembler. 500 KIPS and very small RAM so likely those compilers were multiple passes and required a disc.

I did RPG II programming on the successor machine the S/36 for a few years. That was available in a micro form not bigger than a PC to mid and full size.

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#13

Post by russh » Tue, Feb 14, 2023, 5:10 PM UTC

macjohnmcc wrote: post #12

jacquesm wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mostly RPG rather than scientific computing, though you could get COBOL, FORTRAN and of course an assembler. 500 KIPS and very small RAM so likely those compilers were multiple passes and required a disc.

I did RPG II programming on the successor machine the S/36 for a few years. That was available in a micro form not bigger than a PC to mid and full size.

I still have nightmares of modifying old indicator infested RPG II spaghetti code for a local hospital to create magnetic tape versions of UB52 and form 1500’s.

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#14

Post by icedchai » Tue, Feb 14, 2023, 5:42 PM UTC

somat wrote: post #6

TedDoesntTalk wrote: post #5

What was system/3 used for?

I had to look it up, it is the ancestor to the as/400 family of computers.

We had a System/36 at a family business, which was the ancestor of the AS/400. It was a large box, roughly the size of a refrigerator on its side. It had 256K of memory, a whopping 100 megabyte disk, something like 8 terminals, and a couple of line printers. I think it cost almost $200,000 USD in 80's money.

In the mid-90's, they replaced it with PCs.

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#15

Post by ngcc_hk » Tue, Feb 14, 2023, 10:51 PM UTC

In the video link in the posting and dig around, you found quite a good promotion video of Ibm system/3. It explained quite clearly all the components. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TLI50ZbXeuQ

Re: My System/3 model 10 (2010)

#16

Post by macjohnmcc » Tue, Feb 21, 2023, 7:17 PM UTC

russh wrote: post #13

macjohnmcc wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I did RPG II programming on the successor machine the S/36 for a few years. That was available in a micro form not bigger than a PC to mid and full size.

I still have nightmares of modifying old indicator infested RPG II spaghetti code for a local hospital to create magnetic tape versions of UB52 and form 1500’s.

I don't know if I would remember enough to be able to read an RPG program nor would I recognize RPG III and newer. We did use a third-party app that gave us RPG 2.5 where I worked last doing RPG. I still have 8" floppy disks with utilities I wrote at the time and the Pop editor.